Apologies & Truth
by lavenderspark
Summary: Liza tells Charles the truth. Set after s4ep10. One shot.


**A/N:** Thanks for all the love on my first fic for this show! I was amazed by the response, it really means a lot.

She stood outside his door, the cool wind blowing her hair. She argued with herself about whether or not to go through with it, but when the cab pulled away, she was left with no choice. She had come with the intention of telling him the truth, telling him everything. But now that she was here, looking up at his home, she wasn't sure. She still didn't want to stop his family from being whole again, if that was possible. Then she remembered the look on his face on the balcony, the pain masked by anger. She wanted to make him understand.

Taking a deep breath, she climbed the stairs and knocked on the door, hoping he would hear and it wouldn't wake the girls. He must've been close because he opened the door before she had even put her hand down.

"Liza," he said, with an edge of anger.

She held up her hand to stop him from saying more, "I wanted to apologize. For what I said earlier."

"You don't need to apologize," he paused, noticing the cool air, "Come inside."

He stepped aside and held the door for her as she walked into the foyer. He closed the door behind her and sighed. "I should apologize for my behavior. You're young, you should be focused on your career and not tangled up in my mess. I'm sorry."

"But I'm not," she blurted. When he looked confused, she continued. "I'm not young."

"I assure you, twenty-seven is still young, Liza," he said with a half smile.

"No, I mean, I'm not twenty-seven. I'm forty-one."

He looked at her wide eyed for a moment, her words slowly sinking in, "What?"

"I lied," she watched his face as he put it all together. "I'm sorry. I never thought anything like this would happen. I needed a job. But now I need you to know that I do care about you and I'm not pushing you away to further my career. I'm doing it for your kids." She paused to collect her courage, "And mine."

His eyes locked onto hers, "You..? You've never mentioned having kids." His brow furrowed in confusion, he walked past the stairs, to the couch and sat down.

Liza followed him and sat in the opposite corner, facing him. "Just one. She's in college," she said with a small smile.

"College!" He said whipping his head around, to look at her.

She nodded, "That's why I need this job. I'm the only one she can depend on. But I hadn't worked in years and no one wanted a forty year old assistant. I was desperate."

He was silent, staring across the room. She watched him for a moment, then gathered herself and said, "I should go. I know this is a lot all at once. I just didn't want to lie to you any more. I'm sorry."

She stood to go and he grabbed her hand to stop her, "Thank you," he said, looking up at her. "For being honest with me."

She squeezed his hand and smiled, "Of course." He dropped her hand and she turned to go.

"What about Jay?" He asked softly.

"Jay?" She stopped in the doorway and looked back at him. "I met him at Bonfire and then he saw me out with Caitlin, my daughter. I tried to convince him she wasn't, but he didn't buy it. I told him the truth and hoped he wouldn't blackmail me or get me fired. Lucky for me he's a decent guy. He saved me at the party earlier. I ran into the parents of Caitlin's roommate and he pretended I was his date. Caitlin doesn't know."

"So, you're...?" He trailed off, a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

"Friends," she finished, smiling gently. "Just friends. Good night Charles."

"Good night Liza," he said watching her walk to the door.

She stepped out into the cool air once again, pulling the door shut behind her. She let out a sigh and leaned back against the door for a moment. She had no idea where things would go from here, but she felt better. She walked down the steps, calling a taxi as she went.

 **A/N:**

I ignored the ending of the episode. I like Jay, I just don't like him as a romantic interest for Liza. It feels super forced (and it kind of is) and I just don't like them together, even if I wasn't #TeamCharles.

I know this isn't like my other one, but I feel this is a little more true to their characters. Charles needs to mull over the information he was just given. I hope that you still liked it!


End file.
